[Comment] EXXELERATE: a negative trial with importance for clinical practice

December 6, 2016

The Lancet 388, 10061 (2016)

Author: Tore K Kvien, Till Uhlig

Drug management of rheumatoid arthritis has undergone a large improvement during the past 10–15 years. The current treatment strategy focuses on early initiation of treatment with disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs), in particular with methotrexate as the anchor drug.1 A treatment target (remission) should be established, patients should be monitored closely, and treatment should be changed if the target is not reached within a prespecified time period.